Foreign Minister Arzu Rana Deuba has confirmed that 16 Nepalis are currently in Iran, which is involved in a conflict with Israel. Addressing the House of Representatives on Monday, she stated that 11 Nepalis are staying in a location called Mashhad, while the other five are in prison for entering Iran illegally.
She said 11 of them are expected to arrive in India on Tuesday via an Indian flight, and Nepal had agreed to their evacuation after India offered to rescue Nepalis along with its own citizens. One of the evacuees lacks travel documents, and the process to issue them is underway, she added. Efforts are in progress to secure the release of the five jailed Nepalis.
She also said that the government is working with priority for the safety of Nepalis in areas affected by the ongoing conflict between Israel and Iran, while taking the potential impacts seriously. “The ministry issued travel-related information with detailed contact details on June 15, requesting Nepalis currently in Israel and Iran to exercise maximum caution from a safety perspective.” Minister Rana said that the Nepali ambassadors in the respective countries have been instructed to coordinate for the safety of Nepali citizens. Mentioning that an ‘online portal’ was launched on June 17 to collect details of Nepali citizens, she informed that 885 individuals have registered their information on the portal so far and the registration process is increasing.
The Foreign Affairs Minister stated, “On June 18, all Nepali missions in the Gulf have been instructed to facilitate the process of providing online visas and other assistance for Nepalis who wish to travel to safe locations or neighboring countries, in light of the current suspension of air routes in those countries.”
In this context, she mentioned that the Jordanian government documented, on June 19, the need to provide necessary assistance to foreign nationals coming from Israel to their borders. The minister also stated that the Nepali embassy has communicated with ILO and IOM regarding facilitation on this matter. She also mentioned that efforts are underway for a prompt rescue and repatriation from Israel and Iran through coordination with the relevant bodies and the formation of a rapid response group. Foreign Minister Deuba stated that the Nepal government has been continuously pursuing diplomatic efforts at both bilateral and multilateral levels for the release of Bipin Joshi, held hostage since the 7 Oct 2023 attack near Gaza.
She added that Nepal has been pursuing economic diplomacy as one of the major tools of its foreign policy and its missions abroad are being encouraged to get engaged in areas like trade, foreign investment, tourism and technology. Minister Deuba said efforts are underway through diplomatic missions to promote cultural and tourism diplomacy, adding that her ministry is also taking steps for the sustainability of Nepal’s graduation from the grouping of least developed countries to the club of middle-income developing countries. Nepal is scheduled to become a developing nation in 2026.
She made it clear before the session that the appointment of ambassadors is taking place as per the existing rules and in the deputation of labor attachés, the ministry follows the recommendations of the Ministry of Labour, Employment and Social Security. As the Minister said, the number of missions and human resources for foreign services has been increased following the ministry’s Organization and Management Survey. In addition to these, digital archiving and data management are among the priorities of the ministry.
On a different note, Minister Deuba said the ministry remains highly vigilant in preventing any issues that could affect national security and interests. In line with our foreign policy, the ministry is firmly committed to ensuring that Nepali territory is not used against any neighboring country, Deuba said.
